Shuttle SN85G4 Case Fan

The fan on my Shuttle SN85G4 has become increasingly noisier over time. Having attempted cleaning it and refitting it there has been no improvement.

In order to replace the fan I have since bought two new 80mm fans. The latest was an 80mm Vantec Stealth fan from OverclockersUK. I have had the same problem with both fans I have purchased. The fan is too thick for the case and will not fit in the enclosure the standard fan fits as it presses up against the ICE cooling vents at the case rear.

I am posting in hope somebody has a solution for me. Does anybody know where I can purchase a well built fan which will fit the Shuttle? Alternatively, I have seen a number of case modifications while googling around. The possibility of ripping my Shuttle case up is not that appealing to me but if it HAS to be done to get what I want then I suppose I will have to do it. So in that respect, does anybody have a guide to a modification which would suit installation of the newly purchased fan?

I assume it's a V1 or V2 with the 80MM ICE not a V3 with a 92MM ICE. There are several mods you can do to get the puppy quiet and cool but your existing temps (idle and load) would be helpfull before I suggest more . Use nTune's monitor if you need to get the temps from Windows.

The lubricant in most fans is fine, chances are the bearings are just on their way out. Either mount the fan on the outside of the case with longer screws (M2 I think) or invest in a 120mm fan and adaptor. With the rear grill cut, 120mm fan installed, shroud replaced with custom job and other air leaks filled, I've dropped from 55 degrees to 45 degrees. The ICE fan is also silent running at 870 RPM.

take your fan off and oil it, it may make it quiet again. if not then see if there is any dust collected on the blades as this will make it more noisy. if there is clean it.

Shuttles Sunon fans tend to have the bearings go long before the lube gives out. The fans are Shuttles major weak spot.

If you want to just cut noise and not temps and cutting the Shuttle up is not your bag then just get a decent 80MM fan of the correct size (tape measure is a wonder when checking sizes ). I use Papst's in mine and there very quiet, shift air and last well.

Failing that a new fan and simple grill mod gives very pleasing results. Next step up is the 120MM fan mod, easy to do but it needs to be done well or it can make things worse.

It's got masses of really good guides and worklogs on various shuttles (pre-modding, cooling modification, watercooling etc etc). Look through the first 3 or 4 pages and you should be able to work out what's best for you